Don't Let Texas Rewrite History

Led by far-right ideologues, the Texas State Board of Education recently gave preliminary approval to a plan that would radically change what children across the country learn in history class.

The ultra-conservative majority on the board - none of whom are experts in any academic discipline and many of whom are explicitly anti-science - took the curricula proposed by teachers and made over a hundred changes to "correct" the perceived left-wing bias.

But it gets worse. Since Texas is one of the largest textbook markets in the country, material written to cater to the Texas curricula will find its way into textbooks across the country unless textbook publishers take a stand.

Children who use textbooks conforming to the new standards will not learn anything about the political philosophy of Thomas Jefferson or his thoughts on the separation of church and state. When they learn about the Civil War, they'll have to study Jefferson Davis' inaugural address alongside Abraham Lincoln's. And when they study the civil rights movement they'll have to learn about the "unintended consequences" of Great Society programs, affirmative action and Title IX.

It's outrageous. Education will fail if we can't teach our children history. We can't let these far-right ideologues co-opt our educational system.

Sign the petition to tell the textbook publishers: Don't let Texas rewrite history.

Letter to

Pearson Education

Macmillan

Houghton Mifflin Harcourt

and 1 other

McGraw-Hill

I am writing to urge you not to lower your standards to appease the anti-science, ultra-conservatives on the Texas State Board of Education who are seeking to rewrite history to reflect a far-right ideology.

As a publisher of textbooks, you are an important steward of our children's education. Do not bend to pressure from a few ideologues in Texas. Parents, teachers, librarians and children are depending on you to stop this attack on our educational system.

If you write the Texas curricula standards into textbooks for the national market, children will not learn anything about Thomas Jefferson's political philosophy or his thoughts on the separation of church and state.

When they learn about the Civil War, they'll have to study Jefferson Davis' inaugural address alongside Abraham Lincoln's. And when they study the civil rights movement they'll have to learn about the "unintended consequences" of Great Society programs, affirmative action and Title IX.

Your job is to educate our children, not cater to the whims of a small minority who wish to indoctrinate them. We understand that the Texas State Board of Education exerts enormous market pressure on your company. But we are counting on you to take a stand and resist the pressure to replace history with propaganda in our nation's textbooks.